Letters to the Editor

Feb. 17

Poverty plan
The interview with Samuel Bowles raised a few issues on which I would like to comment.

Whilst I would agree that there is a trade-off between income and equality, there is little or no opportunity for encouraging any realistic or sustainable local economic development given the poor state of educational achievement in this state. The problem also is not so much the surplus of so called “guard labor,” but the ever growing, and by definition unproductive, pubic sector employment.

Finally, giving people handouts at age 18 may satisfy equality of opportunity, but it presumes equality of ability mitigated only by luck. Economic development can generate wealth for all as the history of the industrial revolution has shown, but it is generally measured by scarcity value. If Bowles is for greater efficiencies, then surely introducing no-strings handouts is likely to lead to further dependencies on state largesse and further economic decline (eg, subprime loans). Overall too much theory and unsupported data.

Unfortunately, as FDR said, capitalism (be it demand or supply driven) does result in inequalities of wealth, however, socialism (or social democracy) results in an equal distribution of poverty. David Brown
Santa Fe

The Reporter welcomes original, signed letters to the editor. Letters (no more than 200 words) should refer to speci?c articles in the Reporter. They may be edited for clarity and space. Include address and phone number for veri?cation purposes; these will not be published.